New publication: Older People’s Contributions During the COVID-19 Pandemic Response
Authored by Merryn Gott, Janine Wiles, Tessa Morgan, Lisa Williams, Kathryn Morgan, Stella Black, Anne Koh, Elizabeth Fanueli, Jing Xu, Hetty Goodwin, Dihini Pilimatalawwe & Tess Moeke-Maxwell.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, older people were identified as an ‘at risk’ group, requiring further preventative measures to support their well-being. This depiction was supported by governments around the world, including in Aotearoa New Zealand, and reinforced by media representations of older people across this timeframe. This multi-method qualitative study shifts the narrative by asking: how did older people contribute to the COVID-19 public health response? A reflexive thematic analysis was used to explain the responses from 870 letter-writers and 44 interviewees, all of whom experienced the New Zealand lockdown response and COVID-19 pandemic as older people.
Drawing on this rich qualitative dataset, the paper challenges the dominant media representation of older people as ‘help recipients’ during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Moreover, the findings of this study demonstrate that older New Zealanders made important contributions to wider society during the Covid-19 lockdowns. Specifically, the study participants described how they engaged in 1) volunteer work, 2) nurturing activities, and, 3) advocacy/activism during the COVID-19 lockdowns. This research importantly shows that older people have valuable skills and knowledge to contribute during times of national emergency. Policy makers must consider this key finding when considering future policy objectives.
Read this open access paper in full here: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08959420.2024.2384322
Read some of the lockdown letters here: https://www.tearairesearchgroup.net/have-our-say